Macbeth Reaction To Duncan's Death

Back in the 1600s, when the Renaissance age existed monarchies existed everywhere in Europe and some parts of Asia. The kings ruled the country and was considered the leader who made all the countries decision from war to education. So when a king dies or gets murdered it would have a huge impact on its people because they lost their ruler. In Macbeth, King Duncan is murdered in his sleep by Macbeth and numerous reactions of characters are revealed. Some reactions are positive and some are negative to the situation. In the end it’s a comparison of an ordinary person's death and a king's death, which seems more important.
In Macbeth, Macbeth kills King Duncan with a sense of greed, but his reaction and tone to this says something else. When

Macduff brings the news of Duncan's death Macbeth says “Had I died an hour before this chance I had lived a blessed time, for from this instant, There’s nothing serious in mortality. All is but toys; renown and grace is dead, The wine of life is drawn, and the mere lees is left this vault to brag of”. (2.3.84-89). Macbeth is saying that there's nothing left living for and there is no meaning to the world anymore. His tone in this is distressed, but in reality he's not because he's only acting like this way as a cover up for his actual feeling. Another way Macbeth is distressed when he explains to Macduff why he killed the framed guards “ Th’ expedition of my violent love Outrun the pauser, reason. Here lay Duncan His silver skin laced wih his golden blood That had a heart to love” (2.3.106-108). In this quote Macbeth's tone is very affectionate by the words he’s using “love”, “golden blood”,”heart”,etc. He sounds like he actually cared about Duncan and is deeply depressed about it; when he's not. He does feel guilty about the sin he committed, for example; when Macbeth is talking to Lady Macbeth about committing Duncan's murder he says” I’ll go no more; I am afraid to think what I have done; Look on’t again I dare not”(2.2.69-71). He can’t bring himself to go back to the scene and plant the daggers on the guards. Another way he feels remorse is when he explains to Lady Macbeth that he can’t sleep “Still it cried “Sleep no more!” to all the house.”Glamis hath murdered sleep, and therefore Cawdor Shall sleep no more. Macbeth shall sleep no more” (2.2.39-41). Now he can’t sleep because he will always remember the murder he committed with his bare hands and will always remember the blood on his hands. Though he may not care that Duncan's dead he is guilt stricken on what he has done.
Macduff on the other hands tone is horrified. When he went into Duncan's chamber and saw Duncan's body he was shock because Duncan was a good king and there was no reason to kill him. For example, when Macduff goes into Duncan's chamber and comes back with a look of horror he “O horror, horror, horror Tongue not heart cannot conceive, nor name thee”(2.3.56-57). His tone at this moment is terrified about this news; which reveals that Macduff was very close to Duncan not just because he's the Thane of Fife, but they had a friendship. Another way Macduff is traumatized is when he starts being dramatic about the situation “Confusion now hath made his masterpiece: Most sacrilegious murder broke ofe The Lord's anionted temple and store thence The life o’n building” (2.3.59-62). In this quote Macduff cherishes Duncan so much that he calls him a “God”. Throughout this Macduff's tone is what you would typically expect when someone dies.
On the other hand, Lady Macbeth didn’t care so much about Duncan's death. Lady Macbeth was the brains behind Duncan's death; Macbeth was her puppet and she used his strings to kill King Duncan. All she cared about was killing Duncan and getting the thrown. For instance, when she’s talking to herself while waiting for Macbeth to return she” Had he not resembled My father as he slept, I had done’t” (2.3.11-12). This meaning that Lady Macbeth would have killed Duncan herself if he didn’t resemble her father. She even went as far by saying “If he do bleed, I’ll gild the faces of the grooms withal, for it must seem their guilt” (2.33.53-55). Yet, when the news of Duncan's death was brought by Macduff she “Woe, alas _!”(2.3.84). Lady Macbeths tone in this is bittersweet because she cares about Duncan's death, but not a lot. And to make it dramatic she pretends to faint from the shocking news. She doesn’t care about Duncan's death; she wants her crown. She's so greedy and power hungry that she’ll do anything for the crown. Though towards the end of Macbeth she starts showing some real emotion to Duncan's death. In Act 5 when Lady Macbeth starts going crazy she “What need we fear who knows it, when none can call our power to accoint?-Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him”(5.1.32-34). In this quote, Lady Macbeth's tone is guilty; she regrets planning Duncan's death. This reveals the theme looks are deceiving because Lady Macbeth maybe cruel and cold hearted but in the end she cares for other well beings.
The best for last is Malcolm, King Duncan's son.

When Malcolm hears the news of his father's death he’s very egotistical. For example, when Macduff tells him the news he “Let’s not consort with them. I’ll to England”(2.3.132-134). His tone in this is diplomatic because he is trying to run away from his problems. He cares about his father's death, but not a lot because he more worried about his own safety because he thinks he's going to be killed next, so he runs off to England. Also Malcolm admits that he doesn’t feel much emotion to his father's death; he “To show and unflet sorrow is an office which the false mandoes say”(2.3.133-134). Malcolm's tone in this is very cautionary and detached because he’s aware of the situation and the consequences but he doesn’t feel upset about his father's

death.
While Duncan's death affected a great amount of people; Macbeth’s death didn't seem to have left people with the same impression. Macbeth was killed by Macduff due to the crimes Macbeth committed and for killing Macduff's family. After Macduff kills Macbeth he say”Hail,King For thou art.Behold where stands. The unsurpers cursed head.The time is free. I see hee compassed with thy kingdom's pearl, That speak My salutation in their minds, whose voices I desire aloud with mine. Hail, King of Scotland!”(5.8.54-59). In this quote Macduff is holding Macbeth's head and says its “cursed”; his tone in this is malicious because he hated Macbeth from the very beginning. In fact, while talking to Malcolm he “Since that the trust issue of thy throne By his own interdiction stands accursed, And does blaspheme his breed?”(4.3.108-110). In this quote Macduff refers to Macbeth as a cursed man and disgraced to the royal family in a accusatory and bitter tone. This reveals that Macduff never trusted or believed Macbeth to be a good person. Even after Macbeth was killed people didn’t acknowledge his death, all they did was Macduff as the King of Scotland” (5.8.59).
There are many themes in Macbeth, one of which is looks are deceiving.

In Macbeth, both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth hide their true personalities in order to get the power. While behaving friendly and enthusiastic in front of Duncan, behind his back they were planning his death. Another main theme in Macbeth is ambition. The more ambitious you are the more power hungry you become. In Macbeth, Macbeth sends men to kill Banquo and his son because he saw them as a threat to the power he holds, since according to the witches Banquo's descendants would be the next generation’s rulers and Macbeth didn’t want that though he failed killing Banquo's son. Finally, the most important theme in the book is guilt. Guilt is present in every act in Macbeth from Duncan's murder to Lady Macbeth's guilt in act 5. Guilt held the remainder of their wrong doings which ended up affecting their emotional and mental

health.
As you can see King Duncan's death was more significant to the characters in the book than Macbeth's death was. There are other factors besides Duncan being king for its significance because Duncan was a good king due to the way he dealt with things. Macbeth on the other hand wasn’t much liked by some of the characters such as Macduff and Malcolm. According to Malcolm Macbeth was a” Luxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful, sudden malicious, smacking of every sin” (4.3.59-60). The tone of this would be vindictive because Malcolm is very bitter of Macbeth; he can barely stand the guy. Overall King Duncan's death impacted more people than Macbeth's death did.